


New Face, New Voice, Same Old Lines

by Wolfheart



Series: Forgive My Sins [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alcohol, Angst, Arguing, Cussing, F/M, Gen, Hints Of Het Relationship, Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-15
Updated: 2013-03-15
Packaged: 2017-12-05 08:34:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/721024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfheart/pseuds/Wolfheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean returns from the bar to hear Sam arguing about Lilith with someone in their motel room. Unfortunately, Dean learns the person inside isn't much of a stranger after all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry that it's been two weeks, anon! ;A;  
> I meant to hurry up and finish this before I left on my trip for Vegascon, but that didn't happen. Lol. I finally got it all done now though~ (:
> 
> I've had part of this written for awhile. Now that it's finished though, I have absolutely no idea where I was originally going to go with this 'verse. Looks like it's time to start forming new ideas. Haha. Honestly, I've just been going with the flow on this. Seriously though. I randomize word prompts and go from there. I do have a few plot ideas though. I guess we'll see where this goes. I hope you guys enjoy the ride, wherever it may take us~ Lol

While feeling a bit tipsy, Dean walked with unsteady steps towards the motel room that him and Sam had been staying in for the past few nights. It was around two in the morning, which was actually a bit earlier than Dean was used to coming back at. For the past month since he'd been out of Hell, he made it a habit of not returning to sleep until at least four AM. Well, if they weren't working a case anyway. There really wasn't any need for him to be back until later if they weren’t working a case. Tonight was different though. Dean was feeling a little more exhausted, which was probably due to the tough, poltergeist case they had finished a few hours earlier around nine thirty. As Dean rummaged through his jacket pockets for the card key, the sound of raised voices on the other side of the door caused him to halt. Dean frowned as he recognized one of the voices to belong to Sam.  
  
"I told you already. I'm _done_."  
  
"No, you're _not_ , Sam!"  
  
Dean didn't recognize the woman's voice, but it was clear that she knew his brother despite Dean not knowing her himself. He knew vaguely what had happened with Sam while Dean was rotting away in Hell, but who was this? Dean wasn’t entirely sure if he was ready to know. A lot of the details of what happened during their time of separation were unknown to him and for good reason. Whenever something was revealed, it only made Dean angrier and made their situation even tougher. A part of Dean _needed_ to know though. Sometimes it drove him up a wall just thinking about everything that _could_ have happened while he was gone. Dean was just glad there was at least a little alcohol in his system right now to help prepare him for whatever was going on now.  
  
The woman pressed on, "You can't lie to yourself. You know this isn't over yet. Lilith is still out there, and she isn't exactly ecstatic about the stunt you pulled. To tell you the truth, there's a lot of demons out there wanting your head on a platter, but you already knew that, didn't you?"  
  
Lilith? Dean’s eyes narrowed as a frown surfaced. There was no doubt in his mind that whoever was behind this door arguing with his brother was a demon. Dean reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the demon killing knife. It was hard to hear the next words because Sam was muttering, but Dean was able to make out the sentence, “Lilith can wait.”  
  
“No, she can’t.” Dean had no trouble hearing her though. She was getting really worked up over this. “Did you forget everything she’s done? Everything she still _wants_ to do?! She’s not going to stop, Sam. Not unless we take her down.”  
  
The woman laughed loudly, bitterly before Sam could respond. There was an edge to her voice when she accused, “But this isn’t about Lilith.”  
  
“What?”  
  
“You want to take Lilith down just as much as I do. You’re going soft all of a sudden. You’re losing your drive.”  
  
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”  
  
“Ever since we saved Dean from being Hell’s _bitch_ , you’ve been slacking. You weren’t even going to bother to contact me again if I didn’t invite myself here,” she hissed.  
  
This conversation had gone far enough. Dean was too tired to beat around the bush and slowly piece together what was going on. Honestly, that just wasn’t his style. Dean wanted to make this quick. If he had to find out, he wanted to find out _now_. For the past fifteen minutes there had been a hint of a headache tapping against his skull, and it wasn’t exactly helping his mood. It was killing his buzz truthfully. Maybe he should have drank more...or less. With that thought, Dean gave an exasperated sigh and opened the door. Both Sam and the woman immediately turned towards him. Dean’s green eyes swept the woman up and down as he closed the door behind him, and he affirmed his original thought of not knowing her. The lithe woman was wearing a black leather jacket and matching, leather pants. Thick, dark brown hair fell around her face in a gentle wave and settled on her shoulders.  
  
When the look of surprise faded off Sam's face, he shifted his weight uncertainly. Dean frowned. Irritably, he announced, "Couple's therapy ended at eleven. I don't know what all this talk of Lilith is about, but I'm ending it."  
  
The edge of the woman's lips curled upward in a smirk. “This is the after session,” she lewdly corrected him as she stepped into Sam’s personal space. The muscles in Sam’s body tensed, but he didn’t move away from her. Dean’s eyes snapped up to Sam to find that he was already giving Dean a deer in the headlights look.  
  
“I don’t know who the hell you are, but you’ve got ten seconds before this knife gets stabbed in your chest.”  
  
“Dean,” Sam warned, but Dean ignored it. He didn’t care if Sam knew this demon or not. A demon’s a demon, and they all deserved to have their tickets punched. The woman didn’t seem as worried about the threat as Sam did. The smirk that remained on her face was making Dean more bitter by the second.  
  
The woman stepped away from Sam to get a bit closer to Dean. She made sure to stay out of arm’s reach from him, but the look in her dark eyes was almost like a challenge. “Oh, Dean,” she badgered. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten me already. I’m hurt.”  
  
Dean’s eyes narrowed. He glanced back and forth between her and Sam. “What is she talking about?”  
  
The silence stretched on. Realization dawned on him whenever he watched Sam avert his eyes to the ground. Dean’s attention immediately snapped back to the demon. “Ruby? Is that _Ruby?_ ”  
  
“It’s been awhile.” The casualness of her voice as she spoke was making Dean’s skin crawl. “Welcome back upstairs.”  
  
It wasn’t long before Dean saw red. Everything crashed down on him at once. Not only did Sam twist and torture his soul in unredeemable ways while Dean was being roasted, but Ruby had been involved. It was typical if Dean really thought about it. _Of course_ Ruby had been on the bandwagon to get Sam to do what he did. Dean didn’t know what was grinding at his sanity more: the fact that it happened, or the fact that she was _still_ here. Dean lunged forward with the knife, blinded by the fury behind wanting Ruby dead and wanting her dead _now_. The look of surprise that crossed her face was one Dean cherished, but Dean couldn’t even so much as lay a finger on her before Sam was crowding his space and shoving him away.  
  
“Dean, wait!” Sam pleaded, which only made Dean’s blood boil further. No. _No._ Sam had pleaded for Ruby’s life before. That era had come and gone. It was _supposed_ to have come and gone! Everything was running backwards around Dean. Sam was supposed to be pleading with Dean to kill her already, not spare her.  
  
“Goddammit, Sam!” Dean shouted as he regained his footing and shoved Sam off of him. He squared out his shoulders and glared long and hard past his little brother at the demon who looked slightly irritated now. Dean’s heart was pounding in his ears.The sudden rush of adrenaline mixed with the bit of alcohol in his body caused the room to sway a bit. He tightened his grip on the knife and managed to stay upright. They were hunters. They were supposed to kill demons, not save them. Dean knew Sam had never wanted this life, but the last thing Dean had ever expected from him was to protect something so vile. “I won’t do this again! I’m not going to stand by and watch her drag you along!”  
  
“When have you ever just stood by?” Sam challenged, offended now. “You’ve wanted her dead since day one!”  
  
“You wanted her dead too!” Dean accused. “For good reason! She’s a demon, Sam! If you’re going to try to convince me she has some redeeming qualities, you can save the good samaritan speech. I don’t want to hear it, _especially_ not after everything she’s done.”  
  
“Everything she’s done?!” Sam gaped. He flung an arm out, gesturing back towards Ruby. She had fallen quiet ever since the two brothers engaged in this argument. Her dark eyes calmly rolled over Sam before making eye contact with Dean. “Ruby saved my life, Dean!”  
  
“By turning you into a demon?” The grin that stretched across Dean’s face was cold and humorless. The silent chuckles that left him were nothing more than huffs of air blowing out his nose. “Sam, that’s the exact opposite of saving.”  
  
Sam had straightened up to his full height as anger began to stir in him. “That was my own choice! That had nothing to do with Ruby!”  
  
A heavy sigh left him like a punch to the gut, quick and almost painfully. He was pacing now. Dean’s eyes followed him, trying to block out the demon in the room. The more he ignored her presence though, the more sour he became. Dean disagreed coldly, “I find that hard to believe,”  
  
Ignoring Ruby only lasted for a few more seconds before Dean couldn’t take it anymore, turned a hard stare towards her, and jabbed a hand out in her direction. “I’m sure _Ruby_ here was cheering you on from the sidelines and giving you pep talks along the way!”  
  
“It was my choice,” Sam stated a little firmer this time, frustration leveling his voice now instead of heightening it. “You were rotting in Hell. For _months_ , and I couldn’t do anything to stop it. What happened--all of it--was my choice, and I sure as hell aren’t sorry for it.”  
  
They held each other’s gaze for a long time, tension hanging thickly through the room. Dean announced sternly after a beat, “Then we have more problems than I thought.”  
  
Ruby broke the silence that hung afterwards by taking a small step forward and mentioning, “Looks like that’s my cue to leave. Sorry but I’m not thrilled at the thought of group therapy.”  
  
Dean remembered the knife in his hand and straightened up, which caused Sam to tense. Although every fiber in Dean’s body screamed at him to shoot forward and attack Ruby again, he didn’t move. It would have been useless with Sam so close. All of his efforts would have been in vain. He knew that. Knowing that Ruby knew this too was a little infuriating. Sam eyed him for a moment longer before turning to Ruby. He nodded and agreed quietly, “You should go.”  
  
Ruby nodded back at him and calmly stepped towards the door. She turned her head and gave a small smile to Dean. There wasn’t any amusement or slyness to it, but it didn’t earn her any points as far as Dean was concern though. “Again, welcome back to the surface. Hasn’t been the same without you.”  
  
Oh, how true that really, really was. Dean shot a look towards Sam out of the corner of his eye before remarking stiffly, “Damn right it hasn’t been.”  
  
A pleased smile formed on Ruby’s face before she turned and disappeared out the door. The rest of the night was strained, which unfortunately was common between the brothers lately. Neither one of them said a word to each other. Despite having just returned from a local bar, Dean opened one of the beers in the fridge and gulped it down before turning in for the night. It didn’t help. It never really did. Nothing was going to help this situation. The last thought on Dean’s mind before he slipped into unconsciousness was that he was starting to believe nothing could ever fix it either.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam's still on edge after his fights with both Dean and Ruby. The thoughts inside his head keep him from sleeping, so he decides to take a walk around town. Eventually, he calls Ruby.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh hey. I added a chapter to this one. XD  
> This was a spur of the moment thing. Wrote most of it last night and finished it this morning.  
> Basically, prepare for some angst and brooding on Sam's part. Lol.
> 
> Also, apparently Sam cusses a lot in thought. XD /shot

Unlike Dean, who was out the moment his head hit the pillow, Sam couldn’t fall asleep. His body was too on edge from all the fighting, and his mind wouldn’t stop racing. Thus, he lied there on his back staring up at the dusty ceiling. He might as well have packed up his belongings and hitched a ride out of dodge because he had practically just burned the two bridges he had left. Well, one of those bridges was half a wall, but he burned that down too. Sam glanced over at Dean’s sleeping form and felt his chest tighten. The fact that Sam could look over and still find Dean there surprised Sam most days. How long was that going to last? How long would it be before Dean wiped his hands clean of him?  
  
It wasn’t long before Sam couldn’t bring himself to peer over at Dean anymore and was forced to turn his attention away. Their fight was still playing on repeat in his head. It wasn’t like Sam was surprised that Dean got mad over Ruby being around. It was just so frustrating because this wasn’t supposed to happen like this. Dean wasn’t supposed to ‘find out’ about Ruby. Sam was going to tell him. Really. The right time for it just never came up. Dean was still dealing with Sam’s transformation. How was he supposed to bring up Ruby too? Sam didn’t even get to really explain that situation. Not properly anyway.  
  
Ruby.  
  
Shit.  
  
Sam had gotten into a fight with her too. Two fights in one day with two different people. It’s shocking he hadn’t also run into Castiel earlier today with the luck he was having right now. The thought of Cas only deepened the frown on Sam’s face. It hurt that Castiel sought him out sometimes with the intention to kill him. It hurt worse that he just wasn’t around during those times when he wasn’t. Sam peered over at his brother again. Castiel and Dean had been friends once. They could have been best friends even. Sam really believed they could have been. It had been remarkable to watch honestly. It was so foreign to see Dean have anything anywhere close to the vicinity of friendship. That was the one thing Dean really needed now. A friend.  
  
Sam jerked his head forward whenever something clicked in his mind. _Fuck._ He felt his eyes starting to gloss over and began to blink rapidly up at the ceiling. Yes, Sam had abused his soul in order to pull Dean out of Hell. No, he wasn’t going to apologize, but Sam never imagined he’d be taking anything _from_ Dean--never imagined he’d hurt him. It was the very last thing Sam ever wanted to do. He knew Dean wasn’t exactly going to be thrilled to find out what his little brother had become, but Sam never expected he’d do this--dish out a blow like this at him. This was all Sam’s fault. He was the reason why Castiel wasn’t friends with Dean anymore. _Sam_ was the one who took one of the _only_ good things Dean had going for him and burned it down to ash.  
  
Sam’s hands brushed up his head, pushing back his hair as he tried to level his now unsteady breathing. His heartbeat began to pick up its pace as terror started to stir inside of him. Dean was Sam’s humanity gauge. If Sam ever had any doubts about himself, he knew he could be reassured by Dean. That’s how Sam would know if things hadn’t gone too far. That’s how he’d know he wasn’t too far gone. It wasn’t supposed to come down to that, but it turned out Sam already did the one thing he vowed he’d never do. He hurt Dean in an underhanded way, and the worst part was that he hadn’t even registered it until now. He couldn’t even fix this. That was out of his reach and probably always will be.  
  
If it happened once, it could happen again. Sam knew he was capable of doing some major damage now, but he always thought he’d be aware of it all. What if he does something to Dean and never realizes it? This was all too much. It pained Sam to think about Dean’s point of view too. Dean being resurrected to find that his little brother had become a demon, finding out that Ruby is still alive and kicking, knowing _Lilith_ is still out there, and just--shit--losing Cas too is just a bit much. Sam wanted to say that Dean still has him. He wants to tell Dean that he’s still the same little brother Dean’s always had. Sam feels like he’s been saying that for awhile now without the words ever coming out. He also feels like Dean drinking himself to sleep every night almost as if he’s mourning is a response.  
  
A shaky breath left Sam as all those thoughts overwhelmed him. He couldn’t just lie there anymore. He shoved himself up off the bed and left the room. His movements were sloppy and loud, and Sam’s thankful that Dean was out cold and didn’t wake up to it. The October, night air was frigid and didn’t soothe Sam any. It wasn’t exactly what he’d call refreshing. He shook out the sleeves of his plaid shirt to try to cover his hands some before walking down the sidewalk. He didn’t have a set destination. He just needed to be occupied with something other than break down in some cheap motel somewhere in northern Nebraska.  
  
Sam walked about a mile through the town before his thoughts circled back around to Ruby and the fight they had. Lilith was still out there. He knew that. He just wanted to ignore that fact for a little while longer at least until Dean grounded himself more. That had been the plan anyway, but things didn’t work out that way. Ever since Dean learned about their new situation, it had been hunt after hunt after hunt. Sam never brought it up, but he has noticed a change in Dean’s alcohol intake. He thinks Dean knows Sam’s picked up on all these little tics that are more like red flags but doesn’t care. Dean just does it anyway as if it’s not as obvious as it really is. Things didn’t always turned out like they were planned. There had been a price for saving Dean, but Sam couldn’t help but feel like he has to keep paying more than what he originally bargained for.  
  
Sam eventually slid down into a wooden bench beside a bus stop whenever some of his nerves calmed down. He shivered against a sudden gust of wind and stared out at the mostly empty street. One car passed by him, but that was ten minutes ago now. He was alone out here, but it was putting him slightly at ease. It was relieving after being cooped up with Dean after their argument. Sam sighed whenever Lilith reached the front of his mind again. He dug his phone out of his pocket and scrolled down to the number Ruby had been using lately. He ended up texting: _‘Has their been news of Lilith?’_  
  
Ten minutes passed without a response. Sam raked his fingers through his hair before he slumped further into the bench. It’s when he was about to stick his phone back into his pocket that it vibrated in his hand. It’s Ruby, and her response was a simple: _‘Yes.’_  
  
It’s at that point Sam decided to just call her. The phone rang four times before Ruby’s voice came through on the other line. “Sam?”  
  
Sam went straight to the point. “What’s the news on Lilith?”  
  
There’s a moment of silence. Ruby didn’t answer right away, and for a moment Sam worried that she was going to drop his call. Despite the fear, Ruby told him, “Lilith’s numbers are growing. She’s planning something, Sam. I can feel it, and whatever it is, it’s not good.”  
  
“Not surprising,” Sam reckoned somberly. “Ever since Dean’s been out, she’s been taking advantage of...my leave of absence.”  
  
“The odds aren’t exactly in our favor. Cyrus and Hannah? They’re with her now.”  
  
“Shit,” Sam breathed out. He hunched forward on the bench. He let his eyes slip close, and he reached a hand up to massage his temple. It’s not as if he expected all of them to hang around after what happened, but instead of everyone going off in their own directions, it seemed they all wanted to join the opposing team to extract vengeance. Sam should have guessed it. They’re demons after all. It felt like he was gaining more and more enemies lately.  
  
“Yeah,” Ruby agreed. “We’re officially out of contacts.”  
  
A slightly pained expression crossed Sam’s face. After a beat, he gave a humorless chuckle and theorized, “I guess I should get back on track, huh?”  
  
“Sam...”  
  
“I was the one who essentially played with fire. This is my mess. I don’t know what I can do, but at least one of them is going to come after Dean and I. They’re going to search me out. I--.”  
  
“Sam, you--.”  
  
“I know I should--.”  
  
“ _Sam_ ,” Ruby raised her voice to cut him off. Her tone softened though when she admitted, “I get it.”  
  
Sam frowned. “What?”  
  
“I’m a little annoyed that you left me high and dry, but I understand why, Sam,” she explained. “Your brother’s back. That’s what you were really in this for. After everything that’s happened to you...I can understand the need to want some breathing room.”  
  
Sam shook his head. “Yeah but I still should have given you some kind of warning at least, and it’s not as if Lilith is going to stop whatever she’s doing.”  
  
“Yeah, you should have, but what’s done is done. You’re not wrong about Lilith. She’s not going to stop, but you still need some time. Lilith can’t wait for long, but you can hold off for now.”  
  
Quietly, Sam thanked her. A small smile formed on Sam’s face, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Keep me posted?”  
  
“Of course. I’m going to poke my head around and see what I can dig up. If something big is going down, I’ll give you a heads up.”  
  
Sam nodded and promised, “I’ll be sure to pick up the phone this time.”  
  
“Good.” There was a small pause before Ruby commented, “And don’t worry, Sam. I’m sure Dean’ll come around sometime.”  
  
Sam’s response was barely a whisper as he nodded his head slowly, skeptically. “Yeah, okay.”  
  
Whenever the conversation ended, Sam decided to stay out there on the bench awhile longer. It was still chilly, and Sam was shaking a bit now, but he stayed put. He watched as a nearby, broken, street light kept flashing. Besides the stray cat that was poking its nose around a knocked over garbage can across the street, Sam was still alone out here. The night was quiet, and Sam welcomed the lack of noise. He’d go back to the motel in a few minutes. Whenever he did, he’d be on edge again, but for now he enjoyed the silence. The air was cold and the night was starless and sullen, but that was about the most comfort he’d ever get.


End file.
